LIBERE Rwanda
Would you like to make a difference in your community? Are you passionate about the Sustainable Development Goals? Join the next UNLEASH Innovation Lab in Rwanda, a thriving start-up centre on the African continent.
The UNLEASH Innovation Lab in Rwanda will take place from 2 to 8 December, and changemakers aged between 18 and 35 will have the opportunity to apply for this transformative (and fully funded!) experience until 19 July.
The Innovation Process
During the Lab, 1,000 young participants from around the world will present new ideas and co-create innovative initiatives through human-centred design thinking - a process that focuses on the real needs of the people the solution addresses. Experienced facilitators and experts will guide participants through the different stages of the innovation process:
Problem framing: Defining a problem based on user needs and clear insights
Ideation: Brainstorming and selection of ideas to solve the problem
Prototyping: Creating simple versions of the idea to understand how it will work in real life
Testing: testing the solution with users, learning and adapting
Implementing: Planning and launching impactful solutions
Who can apply?
The Rwanda Innovation Lab is open to young people aged between 18 and 35. We have selected participants who are:
- Passionate and committed to solving the world's sustainability challenges
- Creative and with an innovative mindset
- Enthusiastic about working together with colleagues and experts
- Able to understand and communicate in English
Talents are selected on the basis of the following criteria.
- He showed passion and commitment to solving the world's pressing challenges.
- Possession of a creative and innovative mindset.
- Willingness to engage in co-creation with colleagues and experts.
- Resilience and the ability to overcome failure.
- Basic English proficiency with the ability to understand instructions.
The UNLEASH Innovation Lab no is an accelerator for existing ideas, but rather a place for new ideas and collaboration. UNLEASH seeks to identify candidates who are willing to work with others to , based on clear problems. As such, candidates no will qualify for UNLEASH if:
- Unwilling to work on completely new ideas or challenge their existing idea significantly through collaboration with other participants
- Launched their current idea in an entrepreneurial or intrapreneurial capacity that they are working on full-time, and intend to use only UNLEASH to promote it
- They have generated revenue (e.g. from customers, users) or raised funding (e.g. from grants, investors) for their current/most recent idea and intend to use UNLEASH to work on this idea
- Have several full-time paid employees working on your current/latest idea
Note that we also have a programme incubator, UNLEASH Plus, which seeks out teams with existing solutions and supports them with the resources and network to advance these solutions during its 6-month programme.
Accelerate the impact
At UNLEASH, we believe that collaboration is key to driving sustainable development. We are excited to partner with organisations, companies and institutions that share our vision and want to make a tangible impact.
By partnering with UNLEASH, you have the opportunity to connect with a diverse network of changemakers and contribute to the development of innovative solutions for the SDGs.
Why should I sign up?
Anecdotal feedback from previous UNLEASH Innovation Labs participants shows that, for many of them, their participation is a life-changing event that connects them with the experience, skills and networks that shape their lives and careers for many years to come.
- Learn and apply the UNLEASH Innovation Methodology to co-create innovative initiatives using human-centred design thinking.
- Immerse yourself in a week-long programme in Kigali, Rwanda, a leading centre for innovation and technology in Africa
- Connect and engage with a diverse community of hundreds of young people, experienced facilitators and experts who share a mutual passion for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
- Become part of a global network of thousands of UNLEASH Alumni, fostering ongoing collaboration and support.
Who will cover the costs?
UNLEASH will cover the costs of international flight travel to and from Kigali, local transport in Kigali, accommodation, food, curriculum, facilitation, and programme activities for the entire event.
As a general rule, all Talents must pay a participation fee of 150 USD to confirm their spot at the UNLEASH Innovation Lab. This fee mitigates no-shows and ensures that we do not have empty seats where other Talents could have had the opportunity to participate.
Talents have the option of applying for a scholarship. If you receive a scholarship, you do not have to pay the participation fee. The scholarship is meant for individuals who are unable to attend the Innovation Lab without scholarship support. *
In the scholarship application you will be asked to fill in information about your economic situation, including whether you are supporting family members, employed, unemployed, etc. Scholarship applications will be assessed once you have been accepted onto the UNLEASH programme.
Deadline
Applications to take part in the UNLEASH Innovation Lab will be open for a period of 3 weeks from Wednesday 28 June. Registration closes on Wednesday 19 July at 11:59 (Brasília time).
